A day late and a couple dollars short

My partner and I received an order from Yoseka Stationery last weekend. An inky, penguin-infused order. And I’m too excited not to share. Even mid-bullet journal series. (That and my COVID-positive self hasn’t had the concentration available to pull together part two of said series.)

So, allow me to share what has me so excited of late.

The ink of victory: Yoseka Ceramics Ming Kong Que Blue. Yoseka’s folks worked with an artist to match popular Ming-era ceramic dyes. Ink and history. Sign me up.

C and I traveled out to a nearby heritage mini-golf range as part of our COVID-safe anniversary celebrations this year. We agreed that the winner would get a bottle of victory liquid. Inky victory liquid.

I won — and barely. By one. Which begs the question: was C letting me win as part of an anniversary gift? Largesse or luck, the result is a lovely new bright accent blue to try out next week.

A blue so bright I nearly hear the pop of color

A Midori penguin clip. Solo. Uno. One clip. Because C claimed the remaining three.

This little one will accompany me to and from the copier at work. Smartly holding my originals together. And separating those originals from all the copies.

And because penguins are awesome. Full stop.

Sometimes, it really is the little things that bring me joy

Tsubame ink collection cards. Tsubame’s ink swatch notecards have become a staple of my weekly workflow.

Well, nestled more than stapled

They’re pre-printed with space for the information I like to record. They’re a great size for slipping into my Hobonichi’s back pocket. And the paper handles nearly every ink with grace.

Midori’s stainless steel index clips. I use these clips as bookmarks to make especially important or important-to-reference pages easy to locate.

These index clips also mark where my current lesson plan outline is located within my work bullet journal. Easy to find, and so easy to remember.

History towards the top (left) and research lessons at midway

This week’s Inked Tines update includes last week’s currently inked writing tools.

Toolset

Pens. My Pilot Custom Heritage 912 stands empty for good reason. Excellent performance. Well-behaved on Tomoe River and LIFE papers. SF line allows for clear writing in small, detail-oriented spreads. And the SF proved fun to write with. Five stars. Meeting notes, journaling, reading notes, lesson plans.

• TWSBI 580-AL (M/EF Predator Hybrid) — 1/5. This pair proved more joyful as Fukagawa-nezu continues to grow into a dark, mid-toned silver grey. Too dry for consistent reverse writing (M line widths) without skipping. But excellent, dark, hairline EF lines on regular orientation. Perfect task management pairing. Would do again.

• Narwhal Schuylkill (EF) — 1/2. Dries out after more than a half-day without writing. Resting the nib on a page for a moment leads to moderate, consistent ink flow. Lesson plan outlines, curriculum review, scratch notes, some journaling.

• KACO Retro (EF) — 2/3. Smooth, generous flow — especially for an EF nib. Reliable writing every time I uncapped this pair. Saw only infrequent use, mostly for true accent work: reading notes, one meeting task, and some journal.

• Kaweco Sport (B) — 2/3. I carried this pen everywhere with me this week. But I continually chose other pens for scratch notes and pocket notes over this Kaweco. Something subconscious about this pairing wasn’t magnetic the way I intended. Perhaps with a different ink or nib?

• Visconti Homo Sapiens (EF) — ?? The soft Visconti nib allows for noticeable line variation if I write carefully and intentionally. Dark grey lines that provided easily legible detailed notes, scratch notes, and even a longform journaling session. Visconti works well when it works.

Notebooks. Work bujo. Odyssey Neptune 400 (A5). I added ten pages to my work bullet journal last week. My weekly scrawlings ended on page 49. I do so enjoy pre-printed pages.

The week’s writing starts off with my two page weekly task list. I used the Visconti’s dark EF lines for each day’s headings and for the lines that give my spread structure.

My tasks are recorded in the light grey hairline EF lines afforded by the TWSBI. Thin to a fault. Lines were positively spacious for noting specifics about individual tasks.

Contrast, even across EF nibs

The weekly is followed by two pages of lesson plans and six pages of meeting notes. The Visconti drove five of my meeting notes pages this week. The quick magnetic cap proved an excellent choice for curricular, policy and teaching meetings.

The KACO’s bright blue and Pilot’s dusty purple served as noticeable accents. For marking tasks I need to migrate into my weekly. Effectual-by-color.

Journal. LIFE x Kleid Noble Note (B6). I also added another ten pages to my journal last week. All four of this week’s entries were targeted reflections, each on a specific event from that day.

Targeted reflections, for me, unpack and analyze something that happened to me — or around me. Why did I react the way I did in that moment? What can I learn from how folks responded to what so-and-so did? Do I think so-and-so would co-advocate for the new program I want to get off the ground, given what happened before lunch?

Analysis. With myself as the object of the study.

My first two entries are written with the Pilot Custom Heritage 912. Summer Storm’s dusty purple is a subtle hue. The SF nib lends personality — especially during mid-length and long writing sessions.

I apply more writing pressure the longer I write. Pilot’s SF nib converts that increased writing pressure into excellent, and prominent, shading. A change that reminds me to lay off.

Written dry. The Pilot 912’s SF nib is riddled with personality. A pleasurable balance between soft bounce and structured writing. Especially for someone who writes in print by default.

I turned to this pen and ink pairing for fully half of my journaling this week. Service of the highest order.

Pen in black

Newly inked. I considered inking my ASA Brahmaputra Thursday night. But ultimately got distracted with journaling and making dinner.

My clear-headed Friday morning brain suggested I accept the sign. The original six pens are those I should finish the week with. Universe: I listened.

The collection

Incoming / new orders. The Yoseka order is exciting. My first new bottle of ink since the first week of August.

Outgoing / trades or sales. No movement here either. I am continuing to review my pen collection. One outcome of reviewing the pens I use — and don’t use — is I learn there are pens that I turn to but infrequently. Those pens deserve more attentive homes.

More to come on the outgoing pens front.

Currently reading and listening

Fiction. I started the week with two new ebooks on my virtual desk. Liu’s The Dark Forest, which I’m reading concurrent with my good friend, JG. I read one page. One, single, individual page. Don’t tell JG.

I also started the week with one of my favorite Redwall series books at the top of my digital to-read pile: Salamandastron.

My prime reading time during the school year is in the evenings, just before bed. I was interested in a straightforward, tightly-written story this past week. Salamandastron was my answer.

I read the first fifteen chapters and 2/3 of chapter 16. Mara’s coming-of-age story is heart-warmingly human — for a young badger. She decides she’s beyond the restrictions of home. And so she leaves. Her actions have consequences for everyone in her proverbial corner. She grows into a great person and leader as she learns of these consequences. And keeps her sense of hope. Powerful storytelling, Mr. Jacques.

A timely reminder of where many of my high school students may find themselves, too.

Nonfiction. I wrapped Jason Stanley’s How Propaganda Works last week. Three more chapters, comprising 142 pages of close reading.

Stanley is a linguistic philosopher at heart. It follows that he attends closely to the words we use to describe ourselves and one another. Makes me more intentional with the words I do as a result.

I continued on with my new-favorite woodcase pencil, the Mitsubishi 9850 (HB).

The prince of pencils, so far as I’m concerned … or discover something better

The core keeps a hairline EF point for two-to-three pages of margin notes. So I get more writing out of the pencil before I need to sharpen it.

The lines remain in dark-grey hues. And the core is soft enough to work reliably on soft printer-company paper. Happy place.

Music. I turned to minimalist instrumental playlists this week. Mellow orchestration with a complete absence of vocals.

The Album Leaf was my touchstone last week. Their “This is” Spotify compilation is playing as I write this. Great writing and teaching soundtracking. Just enough energy. Nothing more.